'Here, Charlotte,' said Mamma one day. <br />'These stockings knit while I'm away, <br />And should you fail, be sure you'll find <br />Mamma is strict, although she's kind.' <br /> <br /> <br />But Charlotte took a lazy fit, <br />And did not feel inclined to knit; <br />And soon upon the ground let fall <br />Needles, and worsted, hose, and all. <br />'I shall not knit,' said she, 'not I; <br />At least not now, but by and by;' <br />Then stretched, and yawned, and rubbed her eyes, <br />Like sluggards, when 'tis time to rise. <br /> <br /> <br />But when Mamma came home, and found <br />The work all strewed upon the ground, <br />Quoth she, 'You will not knit, and so <br />To school barefooted you shall go.' <br /> <br />This put poor Charlotte in a fright. <br />And though she knew it served her right, <br />She wept, and begged, and prayed; but still <br />She could not change her mother's will. <br /> <br /> <br />To school, where all were spruce and neat, <br />Poor Charlotte went with naked feet. <br />Some showed their pity, some their pride, <br />While Charlotte hid her face and cried.<br /><br />Heinrich Hoffmann<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/what-happened-to-lazy-charlotte/
